A leading human rights group says Brazil has abandoned millions of its poor in shanty town to the control of criminal gangs and drugs traffickers. In a new report, Amnesty International also criticises the large number of execution-style killings by police. It says Brazil's public security policies have not only failed to reduce levels of violence and crime, but have contributed to their growth. Police kill about 2,000 people a year in Rio de Janeiro and Sao Paulo. The report, entitled They Come in Shooting, strongly criticises the police for acting in poor communities only through violent invasions. It accuses the security forces of extreme levels of human rights violations, including extra-judicial executions and torture. It talks about widespread corruption within the police, and describes in detail a case earlier this year when police officers went on the rampage in a suburb of Rio, killing 29 people. Anyone still wonder why the people rejected giving up their guns? ... http://news.bbc.co.uk

Chinese authorities have arrested almost 1.2 million people suspected of illegal betting offences during a nine month crackdown, state media reported today.The arrests were part of a nationwide anti-gambling campaign from January to September in which police seized £166m and investigated 163,000 cases.The crackdown was aimed mainly at preventing public officials from gambling away public money in Macau, the small special administrative region in southern China that is becoming known as the "Las Vegas of Asia". More than 8,740 members of the ruling Communist party were punished for gambling between January and October, the official Xinhua news agency reported....http://www.guardian.co.uk/china/story/0,7369,1656418,00.html

A US army officer has been charged over an alleged money-laundering, bribery and fraud scheme in post-war Iraq. Army Reserve Lt Col Michael Wheeler is accused of stealing funds meant for reconstruction projects and accepting money and gifts to rig contracts. He was responsible for developing contracts and soliciting bids for the Coalition Provisional Authority (CPA) in Iraq's Hilla region from 2003-4. He is expected to plead not guilty, his lawyer was quoted as saying. Bruce Rosen, quoted by the Boston Globe newspaper, said Lt Col Wheeler had been released from custody and was expected to deny the charges in court. The 47-year-old officer from Wisconsin was arrested on Wednesday, the US Justice Department said. Two other people were arrested on similar charges last month. According to court papers, he and his co-conspirators are accused of accepting money and gifts in exchange for awarding reconstruction contracts. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/americas/4491614.stm

India's parliament is in uproar over fresh allegations that former foreign minister Natwar Singh benefited from a UN oil-for-food programme in Iraq. Both houses of parliament have been adjourned after opposition members called for Mr Singh to resign. Mr Singh has stepped down as foreign minister but continues as a cabinet minister-without-portfolio. Natwar Singh, who was earlier named in a UN report into the scandal, has described the new claims as outrageous. The new allegations were made by a Congress party member, Aneil Matherani, who was part of a Congress delegation which visited Iraq in 2001. Mr Matherani, who is also India's ambassador to Croatia, told the India Today magazine that Mr Singh had allegedly facilitated the procurement of oil vouchers during the visit. But Natwar Singh has described Mr Matherani's remarks as "false and malicious" and said he will consult his lawyer to take further action. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4490992.stm

A former soldier accused of murdering his terminally-ill son told a jury the boy's death was a "mercy killing". Andrew Wragg, 38, told Lewes Crown Court he and his wife Mary had been in an "impossible and hopeless" situation caring for 10-year-old Jacob. He said his son did not recognise him when he came back from serving in Iraq. Mr Wragg, 38, denies murdering Jacob at the family home in Worthing, West Sussex, but admits manslaughter on the grounds of diminished responsibility. The court heard on Friday Mr Wragg decided to split from his wife in 1998. He said: "It was not easy because Jacob was terminally-ill. "I was, and always have been, very hands-on with Jacob. I changed his nappies, bathed him and put him to bed. I did all the normal things." When he came home from working as a bodyguard in the Gulf, Mr Wragg said he felt Jacob had changed, saying "I just noticed things were a lot quieter. "Jacob's deformities were more pronounced. He was less energetic," he added. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/southern_counties/4492096.stm

Ministers from 17 European countries meet in Berlin on Monday to discuss the future of Europe's space programme. They will decide whether to give the go-ahead to a series of space missions proposed for the next decade. A robotic Mars probe, a replacement for the lost Cryosat ice mission and a satellite network to monitor the Earth are all vying for funding. The talks are regarded as pivotal to the future of Europe's space industry amid shrinking commercial markets. At this year's annual ministerial meeting, the European Space Agency (Esa) is asking its 18 member states (17 European countries and Canada) to contribute 8.8bn euros (£5.9bn) for mandatory and optional space programmes. ...http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/4489216.stm